The Pasco County Commission publicly commended drugstore chain CVS Health Tuesday for removing tobacco products from its stores around the country.
In a resolution, the commission cited a January surgeon general’s report that said smoking kills 480,000 people annually, and sickens millions more. It also costs the nation more than $289 billion in health care expenses and economic costs each year.
CVS had announced earlier this year it would remove tobacco products from its stores, but then decided to do it a month earlier than planned. That move, commissioners said, represents the “bold action needed from all segments of our society to accelerate progress against tobacco, and make the next generation tobacco-free.”
As part of its plan to remove tobacco products, CVS launched a campaign called “OneGoodReason,” where it invites customers to share their personal stories on how smoking and tobacco use has affected their lives, and why they now live tobacco-free.
Locally, the Pasco County Health Department promotes the “Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids,” and applauded the CVS move, saying that it will reduce the availability of tobacco products, and sends a message to all Americans — especially children — that tobacco use is uniquely harmful and socially unacceptable.
CVS operates more than 7,700 stores, including 11 in The Laker/Lutz News readership area east of the Suncoast Parkway.
